Acrospelion alpestre (Aveneae: Poaceae) in India: a new generic record from northwestern Himalaya

Authors

  • Kuntal Saha Department of Botany, Shri Guru Ram Rai University, Patel Nagar, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India. https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6536-1500
  • Manoj Chandran Indian Forest Service, Uttarakhand Forest Department, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India.
  • Ranjana Negi Systematic Botany Discipline, Forest Botany Division, Forest Research Institute (FRI), Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248006, India.
  • Saurabh Guleri Department of Botany, Shri Guru Ram Rai University, Patel Nagar, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2320-3324

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9626.17.7.27316-27320

Keywords:

Alpine meadows, Aveneae, Biodiversity, Cold desert, Flora, Himalaya, New record, Trisetum flavescens, Valley of Flowers, Yellow oatgrass

Abstract

Documenting biodiversity distribution at regional levels is essential to addressing the Wallacean shortfall in global biodiversity understanding. This is exemplified in the northwestern Himalaya, where Acrospelion alpestre—a grass species native to subalpine and alpine meadows of Europe—has now been recorded for the first time in India. Populations were documented across Kashmir, Ladakh, Pangi Valley, and the Valley of Flowers—part of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This study not only marks the first generic record of Acrospelion (Besser) in India but also examines the significance of Acrospelion alpestre in the daily lives of people of Dara Village, Kashmir and provides extensive information, including taxonomic descriptions, habitat details, distribution maps, global range patterns, ethnobotanical observations, and ecological insights. This discovery highlights a large number of species which are undocumented till date.

Author Biographies

Kuntal Saha, Department of Botany, Shri Guru Ram Rai University, Patel Nagar, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India.

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Manoj Chandran, Indian Forest Service, Uttarakhand Forest Department, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India.

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Ranjana Negi, Systematic Botany Discipline, Forest Botany Division, Forest Research Institute (FRI), Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248006, India.

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Saurabh Guleri, Department of Botany, Shri Guru Ram Rai University, Patel Nagar, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India.

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Published

26-07-2025

Issue

Vol. 17 No. 7 (2025)

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Copyright (c) 2025 Kuntal Saha, Manoj Chandran, Ranjana Negi, Saurabh Guleri

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